Kevin Smith to Appear on the Simpsons as Himself

Kevin Smith is heading to Springfield. The Jay and Silent Bob Reboot director revealed on Instagram on Wednesday that he is voicing an animated version of himself in an upcoming episode of the long-running series The Simpsons. Smith made the announcement with photos of himself recording his lines for the episode and in the announcement's caption, Smith referred to his The Simpsons turn as being a career milestone, on par with Clerks being added to the Library of Congress' National Film Registry.

"D'OH! I reached a career milestone yesterday when I voiced myself on The Simpsons!" Smith wrote. "This was a massive moment in my life, right up there with the Chinese Theater footprints or Clerks getting into the Library of Congress!"

Smith also detailed that he has been a fan of The Simpsons since the very beginning, reflecting on creator Matt Groening's "Life In Hell" comic strip as well as the cartoon shorts on The Tracey Ullman Show which debuted the now-iconic animated dysfunctional family and ran them for three seasons before The Simpsons ultimately received its own series on Fox in 1989. The Simpsons has since become not only the longest-running American sitcom but the longest-running scripted primetime television series.

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D’OH! I reached a career milestone yesterday when I voiced myself on @thesimpsons! This was a massive moment in my life, right up there with the @chinesetheatres foot prints or #Clerks getting into the @librarycongress! I was a big fan of the @matt.groening comic strip #lifeinhell, which ran weekly in the @villagevoice. The day they premiered the #traceyullman Show on @foxtv, I was there to see the cartoon shorts by the same guy. “I like the punching bag sound,” said Marge, and I knew I was seeing something historic. Shy of the Bart-choking, it reminded me of *my* family, and all the other families in my hometown. So when they gave #thesimpsons their own Christmas special, I was there for the initial airing (when Santa’s Little Helper joined the family), watching with @tellemants. We loved this show, and you gotta remember, I was in my late teens when this show began - so I was rebelling against everything. But The Simpsons was *already* anti-establishment - so we built our lives around Sundays and watched every episode, laughing, learning and loving. The Simpsons are in my creative DNA and I’ve spent my career trying to ape their blend of humor and heart. So when I received the invitation to voice a Simpsonized version of me, I wept tears of joy. @carolynohmine is the Emmy winning writer of the ep, as well as my way into my favorite show of all time. When Homer called Maggie Silent Bob in “3 Gays and a Condo” I thought that was the closest I’d ever come to Springfield. But thanks to Carolyn, now I get to speak to #homersimpson himself! Eternal thanks to Carolyn, everyone writing on the show, the recording engineers, and all the way more famous people who probably passed on this part, allowing Carolyn to go way down the list to find my name! I told the kids in the writers room I didn’t care if I was first, second or third choice: I was just ecstatic to be there. The head writer joked “You were our *final* choice.” So finally, after being a fan for 35 seasons, I’m gonna be part of the Simpsons’ world! And it was all yellow... #KevinSmith #simpsons #milestone #dream (Thanks to AP #briankaufman for snapping the pics and casting man #nickconti for passing them on!)

A post shared by Kevin Smith (@thatkevinsmith) on Jan 22, 2020 at 9:20am PST

"So finally, after being a fan for 35 seasons, I'm gonna be part of the Simpsons' world! And it was all yellow..." Smith wrote.

Smith joins a long list of celebrities who have appeared as themselves on The Simpsons over the years. Aquaman star Jason Momoa, Star Wars icon Luke Hamill, Stephen Hawking, and are among the many on that list with many more offering their voices for unique characters in the series. Marvel stars Cate Blanchett are David Harbour are among those set to voice unique characters in upcoming episodes. For the moment, it's unclear exactly which episode Smith's animated self will appear, though it will be in the show's current, 31st season.

Getting to play himself on The Simpsons isn't the only milestone Smith is celebrating recently, either. Last week, Smith celebrated the 26th anniversary of working in Hollywood alongside longtime friend and collaborator Jason Mewes. Mewes and Smith began working together on 1994's Clerks as Jay and Silent Bob and have since gone on to play the characters in several movies, including Mallrats and Smith's latest film, Jay and Silent Bob Reboot.

The Simpsons air Sundays on Fox. The series returns from midseason break on February 16th.